EXCLUSIVE: John Swinney will meet ‘Taylor’ after praising her courage in talking about the abuse she faced.
A grooming gang victim is to meet John Swinney
John Swinney has agreed to meet a Scots grooming gang victim as calls grow for an inquiry into child sexual exploitation. The First Minister will sit down with ‘Taylor’ after she wrote a heartbreaking letter about the abuse she faced.
A national investigation into grooming gangs is underway south of the border, but not in Scotland. As revealed by the Record, Taylor, which is not her real name, wrote to the First Minister demanding an England-style inquiry.
She told of how she had been abused by a gang of up to ten Pakistani men while living in a Glasgow care home. Now in her twenties, she said she was thirteen at the time but claimed the police did not speak to her even though her name appeared in a child sexual exploitation investigation.
She wrote: “I am firm in my belief that a rapid audit into grooming gangs in Scotland is urgently required. A full inquiry into grooming gangs in Scotland must follow any audit in order to protect children suffering now, and any potential victims in the future.”
She continued: “I was received into local authority care aged 13 for being outwith parental control. I now know that I had undiagnosed conditions and struggled to regulate myself. Before my 14th birthday is when I became the target of a Pakistani grooming gang operating out of flats in the Govanhill and Rutherglen areas in Glasgow.
“Another girl in my unit believed that she was the girlfriend of one of them. It started off friendly, being picked up, taken places, given things and progressed quickly into CSE [child sexual exploitation].
“My friends and I were plied with alcohol and drugs and sexually abused by many men. There were at least 10 Pakistani men responsible for sexually abusing and exploiting me and my friends.”
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Swinney hailed Taylor’s courage after she wrote to him and a meeting has been offered.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The First Minister has been clear about how deeply saddened he is to hear of any cases of sexual abuse and his admiration for those with the courage to speak out. He has indicated that he would be happy to meet with victims to hear their experiences.”
A Government source said: “The First Minister has responded to ‘Taylor’ offering to meet with her to discuss her experiences.”
The First Minister has so far held back from supporting an inquiry, but he has said he is “open” to the move.
Labour MP Joani Reid, who has campaigned for a grooming gangs probe in Scotland, said: “I welcome the First Minister agreeing to meet Taylor, but he has to stop dragging his heels on a independent review into organised child sexual abuse. The needs of women and girls are too important to be sacrificed on the altar of political expediency. He should listen to Taylor’s harrowing story and act immediately.”
Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay, who raised Taylor’s case at Holyrood, said: “While Taylor’s meeting with John Swinney is welcome, what she and other victims expect is meaningful action. The SNP have run out of excuses for continuing to block a grooming gangs inquiry in Scotland.”
It comes as another woman came forward at the weekend to say she had been raped and abused by an Asian grooming gang in Edinburgh.
The victim, who is now 35, told the Mail on Sunday she was targeted while in various children’s homes in Edinburgh from the age of 13.
She said: “I was blamed, I was called a prostitute, and I was made to feel that what was happening to me was my fault.
“This was 20 years ago and I am sure that young women in the care system are still experiencing it today. The government must open its eyes and accept that this happens in Scotland, even if they wish it didn’t. Why is there no sense of urgency?”